Although class actions have been common in the United States for
decades, they have not been as widely used in the rest of the
world. The situation and risks remain in flux, however, as more
countries have renewed momentum to enact class actions or class
action-like procedures— sometimes without key procedural
safeguards that exist in U.S. class proceedings. Jones Day has one
of the largest and most successful groups of defense-side class
action practitioners in the world. Building on the experience of
litigators in 40 offices on five continents, this Guide examines
new developments and risks in class action procedures around the
globe (in particular, in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil,
China, England and Wales, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico,
Spain, and The Netherlands), and assesses the common trends and
differences among respective national laws. It is our goal that,
armed with these insights on class action trends, companies
operating across the world
